George Washington


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Name: George Washington
Birth: Westmoreland County, Virginia on February 22nd, 1732 (Son of Augustine Washington and Mary Ball Washington)
Death: Mount Vernon in Fairfax County, Virginia on December 14th, 1799 (From a throat infection such as quinsy or acute laryngitis)
Political Party: none (Supported the Federalists throughout his presidency
Terms of Office: April 30th, 1789 and December 1792 (Two Presidential Terms)
Vice President: John Adams (both terms)

Being the first president of the United States, George Washington dealt with many difficult situations while setting an excellent example for all of the presidents to come. Judging by how well Washington dealt with these difficult situations, he deserves the highest rating possible, which is an A.

When entering his presidency George Washington had set a few goals that desperately needed to be accomplished. Washington had the unique job of establishing a reliable government which could not possess either too little or too much power, for he didn’t want the government to be pushed around by the freedom of the states or to have too much power over the states that it would revert back to a monarchy. Under the new Constitution, Washington was able to build a more reliable government than if he was working under the Articles of Confederation. Other than establishing a brand new government, Washington also had to decide how to treat the foreign countries effectively. During his presidency the French and British were at war with each other. The French desperately wanted the assistance of the United States against the British, but fearing that they would gain more debt or begin another war with the British, Washington decided that it would be best for the United States if they sided with neither the French nor the British. By choosing neutrality Washington felt that he would be able to revive the United States more effectively and find solutions for some of the new nations problems. Besides dealing with the foreign countries and establishing a new government Washington also had to figure out a way to pay off the nation’s debt from the Revolutionary War. With the help of the Secretary of Treasury, Alexander Hamilton, Washington was able to develop a national bank and a national currency. Under the Articles of Confederation, each state established their own form of currency, which made trade between the states rather difficult. With this national bank and currency it helped establish the nation’s economy.

Between George Washington and Congress, there was a very peaceful and productive relationship. Without this relationship, Washington alone would not have been able to accomplish most of his goals. During his presidency Washington passed many bills which then turned into laws. Being a new nation, the United States needed laws that would help establish some of the basics of the nation. Laws like the Naturalization Law and Copyright Law were passed to help determine citizenship and help protect the works of citizens. Working closely with Congress, Washington was able to establish the first bank of America, where the nation’s capital would be located permanently, and he was able to get the Bill of Rights ratified to the Constitution. Within Congress the party divisions were Pro Administration and Anti Administration, which later turned into the two political parties known as the Democratic-Republicans and the Federalists. The majority party was the Pro Administration (a.k.a the Federalists). During Washington’s entire presidency he only had to veto two laws, one involved the number of total representatives in the House of Representatives.

Throughout George Washington’s entire presidency he made many decisions that positively affected the new nation. The most positive administration Washington decided on would be the decision to make the first bank of America. Because of the Revolutionary War, the United States was under major debt and because under the Articles of Confederation each state developed their own form of currency. By establishing the first bank of America, a national currency was developed which eased trade between the states and foreign countries, which in turn improved trade as a whole and by improving trade the national debt could be solved easier. Although, no known wishes to speak of their leaders poorly, Washington did make some mistakes during his presidency. The most negatively affecting administration that Washington decided on would have been the tax on liquor. The law was passed in hopes that in would help repay the debt from the Revolutionary War, but the settlers in Pennsylvania felt that the law was unreasonable and decided to rebel against it. This rebellion became known as the Whiskey Rebellion and it was the first time under the new Constitution that the government had used military force to regain authority over its citizens.

For being the United States first president, almost all of George Washington’s decisions influenced the future presidential administrations. As described before, Washington established the new government, the first bank of America, and how to deal with foreign nations. Not only did he accomplish those objectives, Washington also indirectly established that each president should serve for only two terms. These decisions of Washington’s greatly impacted and influenced the lives of people in the future. If Washington was not the great leader that he was, the United States could be entirely different than what it currently is.

George Washington was the ideal first president for any new nation because he wasn’t hungry for power or unfair to the nation’s citizens. Everything Washington did as the president was for the good of the whole nation, which is why he received the rating of an A. The United States defiantly improved from Washington leadership.

Bibliography:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/georgewashington
http://sc94.ameslab.gov/TOUR/gwash.html
http://millercenter.org/academic/americanpresident/keyevents/washington